Establishment of a winery (wine production) - selected legal aspects in Poland

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A wine producer within the meaning of the Polish Wine Act is:

  • a natural or legal person who
  • makes or bottlers wine from its own production
  • to be placed on the market.

 In order to be recognised as a wine producer, not only should the wine be made or bottled but also marketed. Therefore, if we make wine for our own needs, we will not be recognized as a producer. Similarly, if we do not have our own crops. (Article 2(1)(21) of the Polish Wine Act).

  1. Record in the Polish Central Register and Information (CEiDG) on Business Activity or Agricultural Producers' Register?

Issue not legally clarified due to incoherence of concepts. An exemplary attempt to solve the problem was presented.

  1. Central Register and Information (CEiDG) on Business Activity

The regulations of the Polish Law of Entrepreneurs, and thus the necessity of entry in the CEiDG do not apply to:

  • wine production by producers who were farmers producing less than 100 hectolitres of wine during the marketing year, referred to in Article 17(3) of the Act of 12 May 2011 on the production and bottling of wine products, trade in those products and on the organisation of the wine market (the requirements concerning the registration in the ministerial register do not apply to producers who exclusively produce and bottling wine obtained from grapes grown on their own account).

They may be entered:

  • Persons who are not farmers producing wine on an organised, continuous, lucrative basis,
  • Farmers entered in the register of winemakers kept by the Minister,
  • Farmers not entered in the vineyard register producing more than 10,000 litres of wine per marketing year.

https://prod.ceidg.gov.pl/ceidg.cms.engine/?F;1b22de7d-916d-4591-b44d-3b8e2be61121

  1. Records of Agricultural Producers

A farmer as defined in Article 2(a) of Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009

  • within the meaning of Article 2(a) of Council Regulation (EC) No 73/2009, 'farmer' means
  • a natural or legal person, or a group of natural or legal persons, whatever legal status is granted to the group and its members by national law,
  • whose holding is situated in an area falling within the territorial scope of the Treaties as defined in Article 52 TEU, in conjunction with Articles 349 and 355 TFEU, and which exercises an agricultural activity;

"agricultural activity” means, inter alia, the production of agricultural products,

"agricultural products” means the products, with the exception of fishery products, listed in Annex I to the Treaties, as well as cotton.

The Treaty mentions:

Grape must, fermenting or with fermentation stopped otherwise than by the addition of alcohol; Wine of fresh grapes; grape must with fermentation stopped by the addition of alcohol; Other fermented beverages (e.g. cider, perry and mead).

Entry of the farmer in the register of agricultural producers

An entry in the register of producers shall be made, by way of an administrative decision, at the request of the head of the district office of the Agency for Restructuring and Modernisation of Agriculture with territorial jurisdiction, on a form drawn up and made available by the Agency.

https://www.arimr.gov.pl/dla-beneficjenta/wszystkie-wnioski/ewidencja-producentow.html

  1. Is it necessary to be entered in the ministerial register?

 Entry in the ministerial register of 'winemakers' - regulated activities

Article 17(1) Economic activity within the scope of production or bottling of wine products is a regulated activity within the meaning of the provisions of the Act of 6 March 2018. - The Law of Entrepreneurs (Journal of Laws, item 646) and requires an entry in the Register of Entrepreneurs performing activities related to the production or bottling of wine products, hereinafter referred to as "the Register".

(2)The business activity in the field of wine products may also include bottling of wine products.

(3) The requirements for registration shall not apply to producers who exclusively make and bottle wine obtained from grapes grown in their own right.

Ministerial register

 The legal basis for keeping the register is Article 20 of the Act of 12 May 2011 on the manufacture and bottling of wine products, trade in such products and organisation of the wine market (Journal of Laws of 2016, item 859, as amended), hereinafter referred to as the "Act".

  • The obligation to keep the said register arose in connection with the entry into force of the Act on Freedom of Economic Activity, i.e. as of 21 August 2004.
  • The authority keeping the register is the minister in charge of agricultural markets (Article 20 paragraph 1 of the Act).
  • Entry in the register is made at the request of an entrepreneur (Article 20(2) of the Act).

https://www.gov.pl/web/rolnictwo/rejestr-przedsiebiorcow-wykonujacych-dzialalnosc-w-zakresie-wyrobu-lub-rozlewu-wyrobow-winiarskic

  1. Is it necessary to be entered in the Register of the Director-General of KOWR?

Each producer and entrepreneur making wine from grapes obtained from vines located on the territory of the Republic of Poland to be marketed should be entered in the register kept by the Polish Director General of the KOWR (National Agricultural Support Centre) and submit certain documents.

http://www.kowr.gov.pl/interwencja/wino/pytania-dotyczace-rynku-wina

  1. REGON, VAT, EXCISE DUTY, DECLARATION FOR INSPECTION
  2. Application for a REGON number ) unless you submit an integrated application to CEIDG) form RG-OF

http://bip.stat.gov.pl/dzialalnosc-statystyki-publicznej/rejestr-regon/formularze-regon-papierowe/

  1. Application for registration of a VAT taxable person VAT-R for
  1. https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/firma/podatki-i-ksiegowosc/chce-rozliczac-vat/proc_1609- registration-vat
  1. Excise Duty Registration Notification Form AKC-R https://www.podatki.gov.pl/akcyza/formularze/formularze-akcyzowe/
  1. Declaration for inspection by the customs and tax office
  2. Following the amendment of the Polish Wine Act and the Excise Duty Act of 6 December 2008. (Journal of Laws of 2009, No. 3, item 11, as amended) producers who produce less than 1000 hectolitres (100 thousand litres) during the calendar year, wines obtained from grapes from their own crops, have relaxed rules on the production and sale of wine. They are exempt from the obligation to run a tax warehouse and have their own laboratory and may remain in the KRUS system.
  1. Placing on the market of wine
  2. Application for authorisation to sell alcohol

https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/firma/sprawy-urzedowe/chce-dostac-pozwolenie-na-sprzedaz-alkoholu/proc_280 - permit for sale of alcohol

https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/firma/zezwolenia-koncesje-wpisy-do-rejestru/chce-uzyskac-zezwolenie-koncesje-wpis-do-rejestru-dzialalnosci-regulowanej54/proc_214-Wholesale/License for Wholesale Alcohols

  1. Certification - voluntary

https://ijhars.gov.pl/certyfikacja-wina.html3.

 

  1. SANEPID - entry of the establishment in the register, possibly together with the approval of the establishment

https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/firma/sprzedaz-i-marketing/chce-wprowadzic-produkt-usluge-na-rynek/proc_520-entry-enterprise-do-register-sanepid

https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/firma/sprzedaz-i-marketing/chce-wprowadzic-produkt-usluge-na-rynek/proc_521- approval-plant-i-entry-do-register-sanepid register

  1. BANDEROLE

https://www.biznes.gov.pl/pl/firma/podatki-i-ksiegowosc/chce-rozliczac-akcyze/proc_196-needs-for-banderole

  1. FISCAL CASH REGISTER AND ITS REGISTRATION

I invite you to get acquainted with the above material in the form of a film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vljogovulo

  Ewa Kosowska- Czapla

Attorney-at-law/ Restructuring adviser

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